Teen working Uber Eats killed in shooting at Atlanta gas station, police say

A teenager working a late-night delivery job was shot and killed inside a southwest Atlanta gas station early Tuesday morning in what police say appears to be a random confrontation involving an upset customer.

Atlanta police Lt. Christopher Butler said officers arrived at the BP gas station after receiving a call reporting a person shot around 2:30 a.m. and found a Black male inside the store suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. Despite life-saving efforts, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The victim, believed to be in his late teens or early 20s, had been working with Uber Eats and was inside the store with other delivery workers when the shooting occurred, Butler said.

Investigators believe the victim encountered a man inside the gas station who became upset for unknown reasons, leading to a confrontation and gunfire inside the store.

"It appears just one shooter," Butler said during a news conference at the scene of the shooting, adding that the suspect fled on foot.

Police said the suspect is described only as a Black male at this time and has not been identified.

Butler said investigators are reviewing surveillance video from the gas station, which he said has been cooperative, and have also brought in the department's homeland security unit to collect additional footage.

K-9 units also tracked potential evidence to a nearby area, which has been collected for forensic testing.

Detectives are still working to determine whether the victim and suspect knew each other, but Butler said early evidence does not suggest a prior connection.

"It doesn't appear so," he said. "But we're going to roll back the video and see what we can find out."

No one else was injured in the shooting, police said.

Butler said the case appears to be isolated, though he acknowledged a recent rise in shootings across the city.

"It's been a week," he said, referencing several recent incidents, but added that investigators do not believe this shooting is connected to others.

He urged residents to stay alert, especially during late-night hours.

"You stop at a gas station at 2:30 in the morning, you don't expect something like this," Butler said. "Be aware, be vigilant."

Police said the investigation remains active.